The U.S. has facilitated the release of 135 political prisoners from Nicaragua on humanitarian grounds, according to a White House statement, reports Reuters.
After months of negotiations between the U.S. and Nicaragua, the prisoners, all Nicaraguan citizens, were flown to Guatemala, where they will have the chance to seek legal relocation to the U.S. or other countries.
The group includes members of a Christian evangelical organization, Catholic laypeople, and students.
Has happened before
Last year, over 200 Nicaraguan political prisoners were freed and sent to the U.S.
President Daniel Ortega, who has intensified his crackdown on dissent in recent years, described the release at the time as an effort to expel criminals working to destabilize Nicaragua.
His administration has not commented on this latest development.
The Guatemalan government confirmed the plane's arrival early Thursday, with the U.S. providing transportation, food, and shelter for those freed. The prisoners can apply to move to other countries from Guatemala.
In 2021, Washington imposed sanctions on Nicaragua, condemning Ortega’s re-election as a "sham" following the arrest of his political opponents, journalists, and religious figures.
Among the recently freed are 13 members of the Texas-based evangelical group Mountain Gateway. The organization’s pastors had been arrested in December 2023 and convicted on money laundering charges, which the group denounced as false.
Ortega has accused church leaders of attempting to overthrow his government, particularly after violent crackdowns on anti-government protests in 2018. Since then, the Nicaraguan government has arrested or expelled many Catholic priests and shut down numerous civil society organizations.
